Ratan Tata’s only ‘failed’ venture was in Bollywood, he teamed up with Amitabh Bachchan but couldn’t prevent a flop

The 2004 film Aetbaar was the only time Ratan Tata entered Bollywood, as a film producer. The film starred Amitabh Bachchan, John Abraham, Bipasha Basu.

Ratan Tata and the Tata Group were present in many fields in India. His conglomerate had presence in everything from aviation and steel to food. But the one passion that Indians have – cinema – remained out of Tata’s ambit for the longest time. And it took an Amitabh Bachchan film to change that. Ratan Tata did enter Bollywood, however briefly it was. But sadly, unlike his other endeavours, this one did not succeed

The only film that Ratan Tata produced

In 2004, Ratan Tata made his foray into filmmaking, as a financier. He was a co-producer of Vikram Bhatt’s romantic thriller Aetbaar, which starred Amitabh Bachchan, John Abraham, and Bipasha Basu. The film, an adaptation of the 1996 Hollywood thriller Fear, was produced under the banner of Tata BSS. The film delved into themes of obsession and familial relationships, exploring the dark side of romantic fixation

However, despite a promising star cast and big buzz around its release, Aetbaar failed to work wonders at the box office. Made on a budget of ₹9.5 crore, Aetbaar tanked in its opening week itself, earning less than ₹5 crore. Its lifetime worldwide haul was just ₹8 crore, meaning Tata had to incur part of the losses.

Aetbaar failed to impress the critics too, with many slamming the film for its corny dialogue and done-to-death themes. The film tried to cash in on the chemistry between John Abraham and Bipasha Basu, who had recently starred in Jism, but failed there too. This was to be Ratan Tata’s only film as a producer.

Ratan Tata, who was chairman of Tata Group for more than two decades, breathed his last at south Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital at 11.30 pm on Wednesday. A Padma Vibhushan recipient, Tata, had been in intensive care at the hospital since Monday.